As a lawyer and politician, Abraham Lincoln was known for his stories and down-to-earth humor. He certainly loved to laugh, but his humor served a purpose: “I do not seek applause…nor to amuse the people. I want to convince them. I often avoid a long and useless discussion by others or a laborious explanation on my own part by using a short story that illustrates my point of view.”

North Carolina's U.S. Senator Sam Ervin, Jr. knew the importance of humor and used it: "As a trial lawyer, politician, and legislator, I recognized the pragmatic value of humor. An ounce of revealing humor often has more power to reveal, convince, or ridicule than do many tons of erudite argument."

But it was another Democrat, Texas Politician Jim Hightower, who said it best: "Humor is so useful if your goal is actually to communicate with the voters. My last opponent accused me of being a comedian, but I don't tell jokes. I use humor as a tool--putting a position paper in a sentence."

You can only write so many op-ed columns before you just need to have a little fun. Here are twenty of my favorite humorous "position papers:"

20. “If you can’t convince them, confuse them.” -Harry Truman

19. "When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are legislators." -P.J. O’Rourke

18. “Money won’t buy happiness, but it will pay the salaries of a large research staff to study the problem.” -Bill Vaughan